Request for Qualifications Issued for New Maintenance Facility for GO Transit

TORONTO - Together with Metrolinx, Infrastructure Ontario has released a request for qualifications to pre-qualify and shortlist companies to design, build, finance and maintain the new East Rail Maintenance Facility for GO Transit. The facility will accommodate light and heavy maintenance work and provide additional train storage to support GO Transit's planned service expansions, such as two-way, all-day train service.

This project will create jobs and make public transit within the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area more reliable; it is one of the most important investments in support of Metrolinx's regional transportation plan, The Big Move.

The company selected for the East Rail Maintenance Facility will provide design and construction elements to pursue LEED® Silver or greater designation by incorporating sustainable practices in its design and construction plans.

At more than 600,000 square feet, the maintenance facility will provide daily maintenance for up to twenty-two 12-car passenger trains. It will include: 

  • 18 storage tracks 
  • an electrical substation for power supply to facility and trains
  • progressive maintenance bays used for train inspection and maintenance 
  • a coach shop 
  • a diesel shop 
  • a paint shop 
  • a wheel shop 
  • locomotive and train wash buildings 
  • a fuelling station 
  • staff offices

The project will proceed under Infrastructure Ontario's Alternative Financing and Procurement delivery model - a public-private partnership model. This provides the opportunity to transfer project risks to the private sector, which commits to delivering projects on time and on budget.

The request for qualifications is the first step in a competitive tendering process to select a company to design, build, finance and maintain the East Rail Maintenance Facility project. A copy of the request is available at www.merx.com.

Submissions will be evaluated to shortlist companies with the design, construction and maintenance capability and experience, the qualified personnel and the financial strength to deliver the project. Shortlisted teams will be invited to respond to a request for proposals, expected to be released in late winter 2013.

Through the P3 Canada Fund, the federal government will provide a portion of the funding for eligible construction costs. The Province of Ontario and Metrolinx will be responsible for the remaining costs.

Infrastructure Ontario is working with Metrolinx to deliver the East Rail Maintenance Facility. Infrastructure Ontario is a Crown corporation dedicated to managing some of the province's larger and more complex infrastructure renewal projects - ensuring they are built on time and on budget.

Metrolinx is an agency of the Province of Ontario. The East Rail Maintenance Facility is just one way Metrolinx is working to transform the regional transportation system in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area.

Quotes:

"The new maintenance and storage facility supports GO Transit's expansions, including our commitment to bring two-way, all-day GO train service to commuters in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. The McGuinty government's unprecedented public transit investments continue to make taking transit a better choice for commuters, reducing congestion on our roads and contributing to a better quality of life for Ontario families.

- Bob Chiarelli, Minister of Transportation and Minister of Infrastructure

"This project will provide an important contribution to the realization of The Big Move by increasing our maintenance and storage capacity and enabling more frequent and efficient GO Transit service to the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area."
- Bruce McCuaig, Metrolinx, President and CEO.

Contacts

Paulette den Elzen
Infrastructure Ontario
416-327-5764

Vanessa Thomas
Strategic Communications
Metrolinx
416-874-5974

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